With Regards: Archives ~
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With Regards: Archives ~ |
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In this day and age I can use my spell check to find out how to spell it and the thesaurus to find out its meaning. Many equateit with wealth, prestige, and triumph, however others believe that it is the journey, not the destination. An attack on the senses; Having heard about it so often, I am sure to recognize it when I see it. I know that I have been close enough to almost reach out and touch it and that made me want it so bad, I can taste it. Ah’ the sweet smell of success. A few years ago the Miami Dolphins (professional football team) went through both the regular season and the playoffs undefeated. They then went on to win the Super Bowl and thus completed the first NFL perfect season. In order to describe the two teams going into Super Bowl XXXV, an Associated Press Release read:
Will the team which ultimately receives the Vince Lambardi Trophy for the next Super Bowl have achieved a lesser success because their record did not match the perfection of those Dolphins? I think not! From the first day the teams arrived at their pre-season camps the goal for each was to reach the Super Bowl. Regardless of the ebbs and flows of the regular season, the number of wins or losses each team garnered, in the end the size of the "Ring" will be just as gaudy. In this instance, as in most, success was in completing the journey, the season, the preset intention and/or objective. Continuing to use Sport as a point of reference: In my youth basketball was my passion. The first desire was just to make the team, second point was to make the starting team. Once on the starting team, the next goal was to win games, the next to win enough games to get into the Regional Tournament in Murray and them on to the State Finals at Lexington. Obviously, the following objective was to win the State Championship. Even though my High School Basketball never won the State Championship I (and my teammates) celebrated many wonderful achievements along the way and over the years. While I was never the Star (nor was that ever one of my objectives), I was part of the team which celebrated success over several hated local rivals. One memory related to sport (and real life) which is implanted in my head until this day, is the time when my team was playing in the local Christmas Tournament. It was half-time in the game against our cross-town rival Lone Oak High School when the Coach’s speech was interrupted by the news that our school was burning. As it were, we played the second half with mixed emotions and ultimately lost. The next day we found out that the only thing left of Reidland High School was the Agriculture Building, which was separated from the main structure. One half of my Junior year and all of my Senior year in high school was completed while attending classes in private homes which surrounded the campus. However, it was successfully completed, Diploma and all. This rambling on about the Dolphins, the Super Bowl, and my high school basketball team is intended to remind us that their are many kinds of successes and that they occur at many different levels. All of us have had such achievements and all of us should be looking toward achieving many more successes, both large and small. Is achieving the summit while climbing to Mt. Everest a greater success than the first time one reaches the top of artificial rock face at the local sport club? Is jumping off the high dive platform at the local pool for the first time a lesser success than bunji jumping off a 600 ft. bridge span? I think not! I remember being up there on that dive platform (on a dare) with my knees clicking together like castanets, afraid to jump and afraid not to. With that success remembered ('cause I did jump), I would never even think about jumping off a bridge with a rubber band attached to my ankles, no Sir, that is one success story I will leave to others. To a certain degree and in certain instances, success is achieved at the expense of others. Picture in your mind if you will, the sideline of the high school football team which has just been defeated to the State Championship. See the 6’2’’- 275 lb. defensive lineman as he sits on the bench, uniform adorned with the evidence of game battle, looking at the celebration across the field with eyes glazed in disbelief. Behind him you can see the stunned, mascara streaked faces of the cheerleaders, standing hand in hand for what they conceive as the very last time. How could this have happened? We were supposed to win! For many years there was a TV Show titled The Wide World of Sports which had a tag line all will remember: "The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat!" Could anyone of us have suffered agonies larger than those depicted in this common vision? Have any of us experienced the elation being experienced by the victorious team across the way?
Achieving successes, be they large or small, does not, nor should it, also provide the license for one-upmanship. Every Sunday during the NFL season we see penalty flags thrown for taunting. These penalties could be for getting in another player's face or, as in one game, crawling away from a sack on hands and knees. While no penalty flags are thrown in our industry, we are often guilty of one-upmanship. A true professional in this our game (Timesharing), would never revert to the juvenile act of strutting around chanting in a singsong manner: "I’m better than you are! I’m better than you are!" ...........Or would they?
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Jerry Sikes, RRP / CHA, is President of Professional Resort Operators, Inc., Scottsdale, Arizona. He has 35 years in the Hospitality Industry / 25 years in Timesharing, and is the current Co-Chairman of ARDA Arizona as well as Chairman of the Arizona Timeshare Management Association. Jerry is a frequent guest speaker regionally and nationally on all aspects of Timeshare Management and a frequent contributor of articles for industry publications. Email: boyjerry@cox.net Phone 480-947-3300 Fax 480-947-6853 Web site: http://www.protimeshare.com |
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